The Truth And The Countdown
by Tallest Red
Summary: A different, sadder take on a 'Zim learns the truth' story. Shows how even though we hate him, it doesn't mean we want him to die at his own hands. one-shot. Warning: Character Death if you interpret it that way.


**I'm still doing my other story, but again, this one-shot came to me. Very sad, but it's a different take on one of those 'Zim learns the truth about his mission' stories. It shows how even though Purple and I technically hate Zim, it doesn't mean that we would laugh at him if he were to unravel to the point of suicide because of us. There are NO pairings, implied or otherwise.**

**Warnings: Possible character death if you see it that way, but no warnings if you're an optimist and see him surviving. And two swear words.**

* * *

I knew what I'd done as soon as the door closed.

Those big, dark pink eyes, widened in shock. His sputtering in disbelief at our news. The crestfallen look on his face when he realized the truth of our words and signed off with a half-hearted salute. He didn't belong anywhere now. No longer a citizen of the Irken Empire. An outcast abandoned in a world he doesn't belong.

It was me who bursted out with the news. By accident, of course. We wouldn't ever tell him on purpose! Of course not! We had planned to let him figure it out on his own. But if he ever would have figured it out will never be known because of me and my stupid slip-of-the-tongue. I blame my flare of anger and tendency to be easily annoyed, and Zim constantly babbling on and on about his latest plan wasn't helping my patience level.

He had kept calling back…begging, pleading, imploring us to change our minds. To make him one of us again. But he knew we couldn't do anything. No one can take back the words of the Tallest, not even the Tallest who first spoke them.

Purple had stared after me when I couldn't take Zim's teary eyes glaring at me accusingly.

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR MISSION!" I remember shouting at him. "It's not like we're ever going to help you out! We hate you! HATE YOU! You're the laughing stock of the entire Empire and you're a worthless exile not even worthy of the word 'disgrace'!"

WHY did I say that? Zim's first reaction still haunts me. That frozen, animal-like fear. Even his SIR unit had stopped making any noise and teared up. Gah, all that _staring_! Purple had blinked in confusion at my announcement, not at the truth of it, but the fact that _I_ was the one to slip up instead of him, as we have always teased. But we originally planned that if we ever did tell him, it would be gradually, not all at once like I just idiotically did. Not like I learned Spork was going to do to Pur if Zim's monster hadn't eaten Spork first. I guess I should almost thank Zim for that. If it weren't for his monster, Purple and I never would have become Tallest, Purple would have been ridiculed for his voice and stupidity before being exiled forever, and I would just be another Irken Elite, blindy following the orders of a green-eyed monster. Spork may have even erased my memory so that I couldn't remember my best friend, to ensure that I wouldn't have tried to save him during his exile, because I WOULD have succeeded otherwise. Before that, though, I would have been forced to watch. Watch as my best friend went through the worst possible fate next to deactivation. Total exile. Just like Zim. Maybe Purple would have reacted the same way as Zim. Maybe every Irken has a right to get a bit depressed at knowing his entire life was a lie.

Not like I care what Zim's emotions were in reaction to a horrifying, life-changing event as learning your own role models hated your very being. I chuckled nervously. No, no, that couldn't be it. We always laughed at Zim, Pur and I. Made fun of him behind his back, enticed our crowd of followers to join in. I never cared then. I had to face my mistake like a true Tallest.

I took a few deep breaths and walked back through the door. Purple was still standing there helplessly as Zim unraveled. I winced at the Irken-gone-crazy onscreen. Yeesh, I hadn't expected him to react THAT violently. I thought he would have turned off the connection by now in despair. Well, if he wasn't, I was going to. It always falls to me to be the logical one.

"End the transmission!" I ordered one of the technicians. Zim looked up at my voice, eyes wild with a burning rage.

"STOP!" he screeched. The technician hesitated. Purple and I did, too. Zim NEVER yelled at us like that. Ever. I was a little startled by that, to tell you the truth. Did rejection make him bold? Purple asked me that same question with a glance out of the corner of his eyes. For a long while, there was a pause, Pur and I standing (er, floating) there while the little Irken panted angrily onscreen, teeth bared, daring us to close the screen down. My Pak tried to slow down my frantic heartbeat as I realized it was up to me to say something.

"What do you want now?" I responded to Zim, trying to appear angry myself. Time to wear the mask that grins and lies. "Wasn't I clear enough before? Or do you want _excruciating_ details?"

"Do you really hate me?" Zim asked softly, dangerously. A strange glint appeared in his eyes. An agonizing spark that only appeared in the eyes of the truly desperate. "Do you really?"

"Erm…yes?" Purple replied. He and I glanced at each other, confused, a bit frightened. Where was the little reject going with this?

"Then no one will miss Zim when he has nothing to live for," Zim growled. He rummaged around in his Pak and pulled out a gun. Purple and I stared dumbfounded at the device. Only defectives thought those kind of suicidal thoughts! Which we already knew Zim was, but not to that extent! Where did he even get that idea? Irkens are programmed to never even consider those kinds of things, for if they did, more would realize they were being sent on suicide missions by their leaders, get depressed, and speed up the process. He must have gotten the idea from Earth. We watched in horror as he slowly raised it to his head, staring at us with a stoic expression, making sure we watched every moment of his downfall. His last, unspoken request to his Almighty Tallest. But it couldn't end like that! _Not like that_!

Right as he was about to pull the trigger, I decided to pay him back for unknowingly saving Pur from a similar fate.

"GIR!" I called out hurriedly to the gaping SIR unit. "Code 8289JC!"

The working parts of Gir registered the code as he turned all red, defensive mode, and snatched the gun out of Zim's hands. The short Irken struggled with his suddenly active minion for a few moments. Everyone watching from the Massive watched as Zim kicked, swore in Irken and English, and shouted at Gir in third person to obey him immediately and return the gun. Purple seemed to not be able to tear his eyes away from the screen, for no matter how gruesome it was, it was like witnessing a live space ship wreck. Gruesome, horrible, yet you can't tear your eyes away. But then the final part of the code activated the unfortunate side-effect the SIR unit had to follow. Self-destruct.

I didn't expect Zim to be so nearby when Gir exploded. The defective had been restraining Gir against his chest, pinning the robot's arms to its sides before retrieving the gun with a triumphant grin. He was blown back with the impact, had knocked his head pretty hard against the table, and I could see dark green blood oozing from a head wound. Purple gagged nearby at the sight of it. I just gaped at the unexpected turn of events. Zim's Pak detached from the impact and flew across the room in small, unsalvageable pieces. I stared at the screen in disbelief. This couldn't be happening! I could tell my co-leader was thinking the same thing with his gasp at the sight of the Pak falling to pieces. We've seen plenty of Irkens die. But not up close. Not by the cruel fate of a detached Pak that was all our fault in the first place. Or my fault, I should say. My fault. Completely and utterly my own fault.

Zim's death clock started onscreen. But instead of reading ten minutes, which I had planned to use every second of to decide what to do, the digital reader spazzed out before reading a shocking new time. 15 seconds. The blast must have damaged it, too! Dammit!

"Are we going to let him die?" Purple whispered frantically. He shook my shoulder and I snapped out of it. I realized it had fallen to me again to think of something to do. My mind raced for a solution while my own Pak worked even harder to steady my breathing and racing heart. Oh no, oh no, oh NO!

14.

"I don't know, I don't know!" I scrambled for an answer. This was all my fault! I should NEVER have let go of my careful control like that!

13.

"I didn't think he was going be suicidal at the news!" I tried to defend myself with. Purple shuddered and hugged himself a bit. The technicians glanced worriedly at each other, giving little input to the situation. There had to be some way to save the little reject! We hate him, but not THAT much!

12.

"CAN he be saved?" Purple wondered. He paused for a millisecond and seemed to remember all the things Zim had done to our Empire in the past. "SHOULD he be saved?" I slapped his shoulder blade at that last comment and scowled. He shot me an apologetic look for thinking such thoughts as the suicidal Irken lay there in a pool of his own blood, slowly dying.

11.

"He can as long as one of the pieces over there stays attached," a computer voice announced from the base. It must be Zim's computer! My antennae perked up at the news before flattening against my skull suspiciously. There were so many pieces...

10.

"But what about the rest?" I demanded to know, gesturing at the little odds and ends of his Pak spewed across the floor.

9.

"Those are just weapons and various devices," Computer answered. I could almost see it sneer. "Such frivolous little creatures, you Irkens."

8.

"Just attach it, quickly!" Purple begged. I nodded quickly in agreement.

7.

"Just because we hate him, we didn't want him to commit suicide!" I explained desperately to the uncaring voice. Almost as uncaring as my voice sounded when I started this whole mess.

6.

An unfeeling robotic arm slowly descended from his base's ceiling and picked up the life-saving piece. It was such a tiny little thing. Could something so...small really save him?

5.

It put it on to Zim's back as Pur and I watched, eagerly looking for any sign of life. A flutter of his eyelids. The twitch of his legs. A clenching fist. I would have even accepted a cursing of our names at that point! So why wasn't he DOING anything? _Move_, damn you! _Move!_

4.

"The device is faulty, it may or may not work," Computer announced, still in monotone. Our eyes widened and we paid all of our attention to Zim's form lying there. He looked so...weak. Frail. Is this really the same Irken that caused us so much trouble in the past?

3.

"Come on, Zim," I said under my breath. "We couldn't kill you before, so don't let something like this do you in!" The dark green blood continued to trickle out of his head wound. But nobody gagged this time. We were too busy trying to somehow wish him back, make him spring to life, laugh off the near-death as a mere inconvienience before announcing his next plan for world conquest. Nada.

2.

"Don't die," Pur and I whispered simultaneously, begging, pleading.

1.


End file.
